A working trip, I flew to Barcelona with my colleague, Tim Clark and our head of division, Dr May Lwin on a official business that lasted from Feb 19 - 23, 2011. The purpose of our trip was a reconnaissance of some sort to finalize the details for our next batch of students registered for the International Communication Strategic Management (ICSM) course in which they are required to propose advertising and PR campaigns for the tourism board of the country they vsited, which in this case, Tourisme Barcelona.
As expected, I wasn't able to get any shuteye during the red eye flight due when we left Singapore before midnight. My body had to endure 12 hours of sleeplessness and upon touch down, another 12 just to adjust to local time. It was brutal but there was no time to fret although when we arrived, I started coughing but I was excited about discovering one of Spain's city for the first time. It was a Sunday and since the Gallery Hotel on Rossello wasn't fully booked, we were allowed to check and we wasted no time to check out Gaudi's masterpieces strewn all over the city, such as the Dragon House and the Familia Sagrada, an unfinished cathedral which was Gaudi's last project before he was being tragically mowed down by a city tram. From the Dragon House, we progressed on to Las Rambla, famous for its flowers and street performers. At the square where the Cathedral of Vardelona was located, we saw the the national dance of Sardana as these Catalans take their dance seriously. They gathered to form a circle piling up their bags in the middle in front of the cathedral.
Traveling with a group needed some getting used to as I was used to traveling alone. I had to endure a few things. Tim wasn't keen on taking the Metro and taxis but compromised when May and I overruled his suggestions to walk but we both gave in when he suggested that we walk back to the hotel. It was fine on a regular day but when it was about 10 degree Celsius and your body was tired, it was quite a drag! There were certain shops or places that seemed like a waste of time. Tim was keen on trying Catalan dishes but I wasn't crazy about Mediterranean concoction of wheat, legumes, and cheese but I persevered. It was a lot easier for me to take my own sweet time to photograph things that are of my own interest, to sketch for ideas as well as shopping for things that I revel in such as souvenirs for my fridge, new underwear from a new city and some new loots or bargains wherever I can find them. I didn't expect to find an innovative graphic design agency on Calabria street that also runs a shop selling books and designerly things and they even have a gallery. We exchanged business cards for possible collaboration in the future. The highlight of the trip was the lost in translation when Tim asked the reception to send him an adapter urgently at 6 am and they brought him a doctor instead!
May left separately on her way back to Singapore on the same day while Tim and I left on Alitalia to Malta on Feb 23. We didn't expect to find a loud-mouthed and inconsiderate Spanish taxi driver who blasted his paging system while Tim and I were trying to have a conversation in the back of the taxi. We both agreed that Spanish in general, are not very hospitable people.
Tim and I parted with May on Feb 23 for the 21st World Newspaper Advertising Conference in Malta. The event was organized by the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers, or WAN-IFRA.
Malta, as I discovered, has a long Christian tradition with idols of Mary and other apostles decking their historic buildings. I also noticed that the locals have dark hair and eye pupils. My fridge magnet was a classic Malta bus with dark yellow paint have become tourist attractions in their own right. However, these old buses are slowly being replaced by a more modern fleet still customized in the tradition of the older buses. Covering just 300 km square in land area, the administrative center was Valletta which became our first stop after we checked in at the Westin Dragonara Hotel in St Julians, the venue where the event took place from Feb 24 - 25th, 2011. At 75 Euros, the room came with a view of the ocean, with two massive "heavenly" beds and I discovered that they weren't lying about the heavenly aspect. It was the first time I had a good rest and after 6 days of restlessness, my body eventually threw in the towels and the Simmons bed helped a great deal.
We were well-fed during the conference but Tim and I wished that it had been a more academic conference as most of the presenters were journalists and business executives who made up the think tanks for new strategies, business models, and operational improvements. Tim and I were bored with swarms of presenters that taught me good lessons of what not to do at a conference. Apart from heavy accents which wasn't an issue, what was important was content and was seemingly lacking as we were fed by talks after talks of how the Ipad has changed the world. Some presenters didn't realize that apart from their insignificant content, their monotonous tones were quickly reminding me of the "heavenly bed". What made things difficult was that some of them were not native English speakers.
We were glad that on our way out of the airport on Feb 26, there weren't a huge number of refugees, considering that two Libyan pilots had retracted from the political upheaval with Muammar Gaddafi's regime losing control of Libya.
Ahmedabad became the first Indian city I visited for my first trip ever to India for the Typography Day 2011 conference that took place at the National Institute of Design (NID). It had been a whirlwind tour as I had been to three other European cities before returning on Feb 28 only to fly again on March 1, 2011. The conference was scheduled from March 3 - 5 and I'd be returning to Singapore on the 8th, arriving on the morning of the 9th. The planning of the trip had started over six months starting with an invitation to submit for an abstract. Once accepted, a visa was to be secured and what I didn't expect was a series of miscommunication between the High Commission of India in Singapore and the appointed travel agent called Mustafa in Singapore's Little India. I sure didn't expect to pay S$349 (200 Euros) for a conference visa for a city that I wasn't quite sure how to pronounce but the conference brought a reunion between, Santosh Krishsagar, Girish Dalvi, and Udaya Kumar whom I met from a conference held in Cyprus in June of 2010. I felt particularly blessed to have known Udaya for he is now part of India's history for inventing the symbol of the Rupee.
The advice I was given was to expect the unexpected and my first unexpected was when the plane touched down at 12:30 midnight, we boarded a bus for a very short ride of 20 yards to the terminal! Student volunteers picked me up and I felt privileged riding in a car with a sign on the back windshield showing "Government of India" but immediately, I was being reminded of my trip to Vietnam in 2009 where drivers couldn't seem to drive unless they honk and honk. Amy, a friend from San Francisco who visited Sri Lanka in December put it aptly that it was as though "If I don't honk, I don't exist". The hotel, Dev Regency on Ashram Road provides no internet access and without any breakfast, I was tempted to move to another hotel but doing so would seem rude especially when NID invited and hosted me there. Student volunteers halted an "auto", short for auto-rickshaw, a three-wheeler for my ride to NID the next day. Reminiscent of the "tuk-tuks" of Thailand, the ride on the chaotic roads were not only bumpy due to uneven roads, potholes, and speed bumps, I had to put my faith in a driver who seemed impervious to an onslaught of traffic, pedestrians, animals of burden and their masters, live stocks, cows, and stray animals.
I kept improving on my slides as my presentation was slated on the 2nd day of the conference when I noticed that earlier presenters were already using some ideas that I had intended to mention. With virtually no internet access at the hotel and access to nearby cafes, making things difficult for me, I found myself rushing in and out of the library in which people are required to remove their shoes to take Skype calls with my brother as we were planning for our trip to Taipei with our mother. When it came time for me to present the second day, they graciously moved my slot to buy time for me to return to the auditorium as I had left with two volunteer students to help me secure a ticket for my trip to Jaipur. As a result, I became the last presenter. Since it was a specifically typography conference, my paper, "Storytelling through Expressive Typography: The interpretive and illustrative nature of visual-verbal compositions" was not as specific but I was glad to hear that people enjoyed the talk and that I had touched on the psychological aspect of design. People were passionately debating about the death of handicrafts and how the new Indian Rupee was similar to the Euro. Regardless, Udaya had defended his case well when he shared the details of how he had planned for the symbol.
When I saw the new Rupee symbol on a signage for the 1st time, I smiled because I could proudly say that a friend of mine did that. I must have been very happy during the conference to be surrounded by like-minded people because attendees were remarking that I was always smiling.
Original post date: March 7, 2011
Halloo, Jaipur
Post Date : 2015-05-20
Jaipur, India
Mar. 5 - 7, 2011
Since the last day of the conference on March 5, 2011 was mostly a workshop for students at the NID, I decided to leave for Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan on that day and for the next two days, perhaps for a different change of scene as the honking was getting to me and I couldn't thank the two very willing 1st year students at the National Institute of Design in Ahmadabad, Asmina Shaikh and Surabhi Manchalwar enough. Also known as Pink City due to because of the pink walls and buildings of the old city, Jaipur is seemingly a popular tourist destination in comparison to Ahmedabad but the legendary and chaotic cacophonous honking continues...
Upon touch down on March 5 after noon, I wasted no time and immediately hopped into an "auto" after checking in and headed to Hawa Mahal, where restoration and renovation are currently taking place. The front elevation is like a honeycomb of a beehive built with small latticed windows meant for royal family ladies to witness the activities as well as processions and festivities. Trying to peacefully shop for souvenir was impossible in a sea of lecherous eyes belonging to shop keepers who constantly pulled me into their shops. If they didn't try to sell me camel leather shoes that I didn't need, homeless kids were begging for money. Bargaining skills are a must for a bed cover that cost 2,500 Rupees could be reduced to 300 Rupees. People were constantly asking about my nationality and I suspected that it was to facilitate them in knowing how much to charge. I settled on some paintings of maharajahs on some really old papers that dated back to 1938. Block prints and textiles are some of the famous items. The pressure was on to find not just the perfect gift for myself to remember the trip but also souvenirs for people I care about. Every time, they'd yell out "halloo" and some would add "my friend" and they didn't even know where I was from. While the "autos" could get me from place to place fast, there are virtualy no suspension on these auto rickshaws that it was unfortunate that every time I was on one of these, I had just finished eating lunch or dinner. Luckily, my digestive system were actively grinding all the curries, dosas, and rice away.
Intrigued about what it as like on a rickshaw, I rode one to M. I. Road for a dinner at Niros where some 0.5 km further down the road was where I bought some stamps for my postcards. Chinese food has become mainstream and is widely accepted as it is listed in the posh restaurant's menu. Other than all the white folks, I was the only Chinese in the restaurant although a few tables over were some Japanese tourists. The ride which was the most memorable was one that I felt emotionally tortured when I saw that the horse jockey was constantly whipping his horse which seemed overworked. The same area was whipped repeatedly that hair stopped growing in that region. I didn't take the elephant ride on the way up to Amer Fort when I visited it on the 6th of March and they were wildly popular with the white tourists. The tusks of the elephants were all gone, probably being sawed away for profit.
The Albert Hall was built by Sawai Ram Singh II in the year 1868 and was modeled after the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Exhibits include pottery, sculptures, dresses of the royal families, metal objects and various arts and crafts. They put Sareed ladies who wouldn't hesitate picking a verbal fight with men who refused to listen to them when they were being warned not to touch the exhibit's case. I couldn't understand why perfect strangers wanted to photograph me with them "for memory" as it happened to me at Hawa Mahal and Albert Hall. My memory was at the bazaar when I was being photographed by Surinder Mohan, a man who inherited a 150-year old pin hole camera with Carl Zeiss lens from his great grandfather. While we waited for my photo to dry, he sat down for me to sketch.
Happy Birthday Republic of China in Taiwan
Post Date : 2015-05-20
Taipei, Taiwan
Mar. 15 - 21, 2011
Taiwan celebrates the founding of the 100th year of the Republic of China on October 10, 2011. A personal celebration lasted from March 15 - 21 where my mother, brother (Jin) and I flew to the city of Taipei. This trip marked their first visit and immediately, they noticed the differences of the city scape and more importantly, the people's attitude whereby in comparison to the People's Republic of China, people are generally loud, lacking civic mindedness and fiercely competitive in making ends meet through various stratagems. Public rapid transit makes getting around the city easier than ever but it is an advantage that I couldn't take advantage of because I was traveling with my mother whose mobility is an issue so the taxi became our mode of travel.
Some taxi drivers just assumed that we needed to hire them for the day and never returned the exact change. One gave me an Indonesian coin which mimicked the size of a NTD10 coin was probably an honest mistake. Universally, I don't have good impressions of taxi drivers but there are good ones. For example, our taxi driver to Jiufen paid for our lunch but of course, we wouldn't let him.
The temperature was "temperamental" with most days in low and mid 10s to suddenly it shooting up to over 20 on the 20th of March. It was both a pleasure with pressuring moments for me since I was the unofficial "tour guide" but we covered a lot of places. Due to this being a sans guide trip, we were able to experiment the highs and lows of people's lives through our casual conversations and interactions with them.
My mother had a great time. People were bowing to her, calling her "ma ma" as a sign of respect of the elderly. Without the pesky tour guide who usually rushed us in and out of places, we took our own sweet time as she enjoyed the performances of the Alishan tribe at the Taipei International Flora Exposition. We saw the famed jadeite white cabbage at the Palace Museum, the CKS memorial hall, paid our respects at the Bao-an and Long Shan temples that date back to the 18th century during the Ching dynasty, sampled foods at Shilin night market, watched the panoramic scenery of Taipei from the Taipei 101, and experienced what life was like of gold miners at the gold ecological park of Jinguashi at Jiufen. The youthful crowds at Ximeting was alluring and the gondola ride to the hilltop at Maokong near the Taipei zoo was captivating. Jin enjoyed minced meat over rice dish. For me, the best part of the trip was when we got to see the ancient ritual and dance of Ya Yue performed at the Taipei Confucius temple (performed from Tue - Sat 9 - 930 AM). More here about the Ya Yue dance. I was a particularly "high" moment for me when I saw the performers dressed in Hanfu. After the performance, they offered the Confucian cultural experience where people who are interested can dress in Hanfu and they were taught 8 simple steps in the dance moves. Jin was yawning but agreed that at least, Taiwan has kept some rituals and values of China alive.
There were some highlights of our trip. My brother found an Iphone which he returned to a police station while I waited for my shoes to be fixed by a roadside cobbler. For some reasons, people thought we were Japanese but for the most part, people treated her with respect and some even bowed to her in a Chinese sort of way while calling out "mama" to her (nodding of the head). Because my mother is being "wheeled" around people were treating her as disabled because at the immigration, I was told to use the disabled lane. So, I started using that as a carte blanche as a result, we were given VIP treatments as we were able to zip in and out of long lines.
Taking advantage of the extended holiday of Good Friday as well as the search for inspirations brought me to the crowded space of Hong Kong which lasted for 5 days until April 26, 2011. Coincidentally with the trip, Easter which fell on a Monday was a recognized public holiday in Hong Kong and because of the long extended week, just about everywhere become jam-packed with people, especially the tourist from mainland China who flocked the island due to the strong Chinese currency. It is now, after all, a special administrative region of China. The "one country, two systems" political system allows Hong Kong citizens to enjoy a high degree of autonomy, away from the clasps of the central government who signed a Sino-British Joint Declaration which was an agreement to transfer sovereignty to the People's Republic of China in 1997 and in essence, keeping things unchanged for at least 50 years after the transfer of power. I, for one, are not required to have a visa to enter Hong Kong. At the very least, I'm enjoying this privilege while it lasts...
A local friend confessed that while locals are checking out a branded wallet, a mainland Chinese customer are buying a few highly-priced items, putting the locals to shame. I spent a lot of time the Jade Bazaar Market in my quest to get new accessories for my Hanfu costume and in the process befriended a lady called Alice. An employee of hers customized some "danglers" that I intended for my computer desk and at another stall, I had a jade belt fashioned from jade beads.
In this East meets West, the lack of space caused demand for denser constructions, resulting in buildings that reach up while leaving their shorter building counterparts way below it. On Easter, the Falun gong paraded the street and it was the first time I saw such a huge parade of their followers, handing out information that condemned the central Chinese government. While Hong Kong may be known as the Pearl of the Orient for its bright light, this populated metropolis is so strewn with lighted advertising signage that it seems like a flamboyant waste. Do we equate the prosperity of a city to its evening luminance? I read that green groups are pressuring to curb light pollution.
I have to admit that while it was fun browsing shops, simple pleasures of tasting delicacies like dim sums make the trip worthy. While it was great catching up with old friends like Sai Sai, Ah Man as well as Hugo and their friends and we enjoyed downing those delicious dim sums, the most rewarding thing about the trip are those inspiring ideas that can only come when I observe closely. When found, I digitally stored in my collection of images, waiting for a magical touch to turn it into some realized design ideas.
Quality time in San Francisco (1 of 2)
Post Date : 2015-05-20
San Francisco, California, USA
Jun. 14 - Jul. 24, 2011
The original date to San Francisco was postponed a week later to June 14 to resolve issues related to my new contract and I found out that by switching to a teaching track from research, on-campus housing benefit is no longer extended to lecturers and I lose an additional 7 days of leave and that's not the end of it. I'm beginning to feel sorry for my colleagues with kids who rely on financial assistance for education from the university. It seems universally, there is a trend to screw teachers of all kinds. I argued that my new contract is merely an extension. They even named the contract in my hands "renewal". A similarly-sized apartment can cost about 4 - 5 times the current subsidized amount. Needless to say, electricity, water and internet access could easily cost another $300 per month. Campus housing is equivalent to monetary value. I have lived on campus since the 1st day I arrived at the university to assist in the development of the Visual Communication department at Art, Design and Media at Nanyang Technological University in 2004. I finally signed the contract in hesitation before leaving for the trip. At least, I would have a job waiting for me upon my return on July 17th. And I'll be in the States to celebrate her 235th birthday.
Tony and Bruce have always welcomed me into their home in San Francisco. Admittedly, the hardest part about the trip apart from my insomniac state and the long hours in the plane was having to face the reality of Bruce's current state. A partner of long-time friend, Tony, Bruce suffered a stroke last year which rendered him immobile with the loss of speech. I couldn't hold my tears when Tony shared the hardship he had and will continue to face on a daily basis. Just 3 years ago when I visited Bruce who was stationed in Shanghai, he was still the VP for a company in the San Francisco Bay Area. Their house had to be retrofitted with a new bath that is friendly for a disabled person and there is now an electrical staircase. There are medications, syringes, crucibles, as well as other medical appendages throughout the house. At first, Tony and I weren't sure if Bruce still recognize me but with his right arm circling "YES" on a piece of paper with other options as part of his speech therapy, I was relieved that he still does. But what moved me more was what I saw with my own eyes: dedication, love, and responsibility. What I saw really moved me. I saw true love between two men. Tony was determined to take care of his partner for the rest of his life. It is truly "till death do us part!"
It didn't help that I'm suffering from some health issues of my own, thanks to my constantly blocked nostril which I believe is not caused by allergies since the problem had started in Singapore. Without any medical insurance while in the States, it becomes a problem that I have to put up until my return to Singapore. Breathing became difficult as I rely on the mouth which created a whole new set of medical problems such as dryness, coughing, and infection. This breathing problem has contributed to my insomnia over the years and recently, has become hard to manage... Seeing Bruce made me realize that I should take good care of myself and more importantly, do I still want to lead a single life? It's comforting to know that should I find someone who loves me and even if you finally found the needle in the dating haystack, but there is no assurance that your partner will be there healthily. The only assurance is to make the best out of the current situation... With the prohibitively high rent of Singapore, it makes financial sense to own a place (albeit above the ground otherwise commonly known as a condo) but I feel that I should lay my roots in San Francisco as there is seemingly more idiosyncratic freedom. The current financial meltdown in the USA has made home-owning much more affordable but in the San Francisco Bay Area, not quite. The search continues on trulia.com...Check here for images posted in Facebook.
Quality time in San Francisco (2 of 2)
Post Date : 2015-05-20
There are two main things I look forward to in this trip: the reunion with friends and the San Francisco pride parade which took place on June 26. When the New York State Senate voted 33-29 to approve same-sex marriage on Friday, June 24, two days before the San Francisco Pride parade, I knew legalizing same sex marriages in California is going to be the big theme during the parade. The march started with Dykes on Bikes. It has become a tradition in this liberal city that kissing, holding hands, snuggling, and other sort of things that definitely make people uncomfortable are widely flaunted. Drag queens are common these days. I'm talking about nudists and people openly smoking weeds. And there are those who worked hard for their chiseled chest and abs, a surefire to superficiality and shallowness. When the wind blew, it felt like 12 degrees Celsius but it didn't stop them from removing their tops. I still feel a lingering affection to these gay men in all their sleazy, dreary, and fabulous varieties.
The first reunion was with Tony and Bruce and the second one was with James Magro and his mother, Sarah on June 17. We became acquainted when James was studying for his Master's at Texas Tech University. When they heard that I'd be in San Francisco, they made plans to visit me as this will be their first trip to San Francisco. Joining them was 10-year old Katie Stokes, James' niece. I was simply thrilled to see them again because it has been a while since we parted in 2006 when I attended Sarah's graduation from Southern Illinois University. James and I are very familiar in many ways through we are seemingly diametrically opposed. One thing that stood out is that we both will be single for the rest of our lives (him by fate and me by choice). A family oriented life is one that I could not fully fathom due to my conscious decision to stay single. But I realize that everything changes! So, when they brought Katie whom the first picture I snapped while she was in her mother's arm back in Tennessee, James' plan become high flexible because he was willing to make sacrifices for his niece. Instead of the Museum of Modern Arts where the current exhibit was of Picasso and Matisse's, we ended up at a Comic Museum. We even visited the San Francisco zoo and as much as I dread the run-down place, I reminded myself that it is not about the place but more about the time we spent with each other. There are snippets of memory which made the trip memorable for us such as the time when I made the waitress take the raw fish back in a Japanese restaurant in Japantown. I figured if I want my fish raw, I can get them at the market but not on my plate...
The 3rd reunion was with Joyce Centofanti. She was en route to Montana but decided to drive 7 hours from New Mexico to meet with me when she realized that I had extended my stay. Ever since our graduation in 2002, we have been trading emails but we finally saw each other 9 years later, on July 14. Her words were "You look the same". It was a brief reunion for about 5 hours before we parted after a sumptuous Thai meal. The power emanating from the money saved from not having to pay for lodging has afforded me to power to spend with some degrees of extravagance but I chose to be careful about spending unnecessarily. Most of it went for meals, souvenirs for friends and colleagues and the most expensive item was the Ipad2. I had my reservations about using Apple products due to their relatively primitive gadgets in comparison with the Android OS but the cool factor was irresistible. Thanks a lot to my 3 month old Blackberry Bold that died on me which rendered me phone-less. With the Ipad 2 came a slew of other expenses such as a cover, possibly a noise-canceling headset from Bose, and those paid software so I can glide my fingers all across the screen seamlessly. So far, I haven't paid for one yet but I might in the future.
Kuala Lumpur: A city where crooks thrive
Post Date : 2015-05-20
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Dec. 30 - Jan. 2, 2011
The capitol of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur is known for many things: the Twin Petronas Towers, the eateries at Jalan Alor, the foreigner run Chinatown based in Petaling Street, just to name a few. Could it possibly be that with some of the world's cheapest hotels, great shopping and food, the increasing numbers of travelers, loose law enforcements that scam artists also find the sprawling city a major attraction? What started out as a weekend getaway to celebrate the New Year of 2012 with my colleague Sean from December 30 to January 2 quickly turned into a constant reminder that the city is full of scam artists. We stayed around the Golden Triangle area with its high density of hotels, shopping malls, foreign tourists an locals with the hopes that we didn't have to rely on metered taxis that refuse to run on meters. To our surprise when they did, not only we were dropped off at the wrong address, the old Chinese cab driver parked the car on the side of the road and took a leak while the meter was running! Luckily, we were not being gouged mercilessly. A trip that would cost RM5 was three times the price when we paid the driver and the funny thing was that it was a public bus that took us to our destiny!
The dining experience at Tbowl, a toilet-themed restaurant was unique. Our delightful drinks and sumptuous foods were served in mini toilet bowls and we sat on acrylic toilet seats. We spent most of our time at the Golden Triangle because everything was within our convenient reach. Since the Chinese New Year was around the corner, there was a lion dance competition at Sungei Wang Plaza but the trip was mostly to usher in the New Year and when the countdown began, we didn't even realize that it was the first day of the new year because we had moved away from the crowded area in the Pavilion shopping mall. It wasn't so much the crowd that we fear but rather strangers who would walk up to anyone and spray them with white foams, thanks to the remnant festive season of Christmas. We didn't even have to visit Petaling Street for imitation watches, (not that we care much about them) because there were entrepreneurial sellers who used the trunks of their cars with brightly lit LED lights to showcase their merchandise. My last visit to Kuala Lumpur was in October of 2011 when I was invited as one of the speakers of the 1st Asia Conference on Tourism Communication. Nothing much has changed. The sign that warned tourist of pickpockets in the Golden Triangle was gone but the place still reminded me of many unpleasant experiences. Sean and I decided that if we were to travel to a city to relax again, it wouldn't KL anymore!
Original post date: 2011-01-30
Other travels in 2011
Post Date : 2015-05-20
Alor Setar, Kedah, Malaysia
Sep. 22 - Oct. 3, 2011
Alor Setar, Kedah, Malaysia
Aug. 26 - 30, 2011 for Hari Raya and Merdeka
Alor Setar, Kedah, Malaysia
Jan. 28 - Feb. 8, 2011 for Chinese New Year
Bangkok, Thailand
Jan. 12 - 19, 2011
YEOH'S JOURNAL
Read about things that interest me, matters that I care about, pictures and observations from my trips and stuff that I bother to share with the world.
